Remote control system

ABSTRACT

The invention provides an improved remote control system utilizing a host device to configure a single remote control via a first communications link, wherein the remote control operates a plurality of devices via a second communications link.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The invention relates generally to remote controls and, in particular,to a dual mode infrared and radio frequency remote control system.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Traditional remote control devices for Audio/Visual (AV) devices, suchas televisions (TVs), receivers, tuners, amplifiers, video cassetterecorders (VCRs), digital video disc (DVD) players, etc., use infrared(IR) light to communicate simple commands to the devices beingcontrolled. There are few standards for remote control IR signaling,modulation, or protocols, and those standards that do exist are notwidely used. As a result, separate remote controls may be required forthe TV, VCR, DVD player, receiver, and Set-Top Box (STB) found in atypical living or family room. This is clearly cumbersome and results inan organizational nightmare and clutter—in this case, for example, fiveseparate remote controls which can be lost, misplaced, or broken andrender one or more AV devices disabled.

In an attempt to ameliorate this situation, “universal” and “learning”remote controls have been developed. A number of suppliers haveresearched the IR signaling, modulation, protocols, and commands used byalmost every AV product made in recent years and created a compressedformat for storing all of the IR information in a database. A universalremote control stores the entire database (or perhaps a subsetrepresenting the most common AV devices in a particular market) of IRinformation and allows the user to program the universal remote controlto control all the AV devices in a room. A simple remote controldesigned to control only one specific AV product can be implementedusing a very low cost 4- or 8-bit microcontroller unit (MCU) with aslittle as one kilobyte (1 kB) of read-only memory (ROM). A universalremote control, however, requires an MCU with 24-48 kB of ROM, dependingon how comprehensive the library is. This substantially increases thecost of the universal remote control.

A learning remote control takes a different approach. Rather thanstoring an entire database of codes, a learning remote control has an IRreceiver. The learning remote control can receive the IR signals sent byanother IR remote control. Thus, the learning remote control can beprogrammed to “learn” the IR commands sent by another IR remote controland control any or all of the AV devices in a system controlled byanother IR remote control.

In practice, many universal remote controls also include a learningfeature. These universal remote controls typically include a subset ofthe full code library to allow programming the most common devices; lesscommon devices can be controlled using the learning feature of theuniversal remote control.

One very significant drawback of both universal and learning remotecontrols is the difficulty of programming them. Hence, a user mustgenerally refer to an instruction manual for programming instructions.Although a remote control has many buttons, the most commonly availablemethod of user feedback is a single light-emitting diode (LED). Atypical programming sequence for a universal remote control comprisesthe following steps:

1. The user presses “1” or a device mode button for several seconds.Typically, a universal remote control includes a plurality of devicemode buttons (e.g., CABLE, TV, VCR and OTHER) corresponding to thedifferent AV devices to be controlled. To program the universal remotecontrol to control a TV, for example, the user presses the TV button onthe remote control.

2. The LED starts blinking to indicate programming mode.

3. To determine the IR code required to program the universal remotecontrol to control the user's TV, the user refers to a large IR codetable of AV Products in the instruction manual. The IR code table, oftencomprising many pages, provides a listing of TV (and other AV devices)manufacturers, model numbers, and a 3- to 6-digit number.

4. The user enters the 3- to 6-digit number.

5. The user repeats steps (1)-(4) for each AV device to be controlled bythe universal remote control.

6. The user presses “1” or the device mode button again for severalseconds.

7. The LED stops blinking to indicate that programming is complete.Programming a learning remote control is even more complex. Theprocedure for entering learning mode typically comprises steps similarto those described above for entering programming mode. The user mustgenerally position the remote control being learned from (the “teaching”remote control) in front of the remote control being taught (thelearning remote control) so that the teaching remote control's IRtransmitter is directly facing the learning remote control's IRreceiver. The user then presses the VOLUME UP button, for example, onthe learning remote control, followed by pressing the VOLUME UP buttonon the teaching remote control. When the learning remote control hasreceived the signals from the teaching remote control, the LED on thelearning remote control may blink to indicate to the user that thelearning operation for that button has been completed. This process isthen repeated for every button that is to be learned. In some cases, ifthe learning remote control supports multiple AV devices on the samebutton (e.g., the same PLAY button supports either a DVD or a VCR), thenthe whole process will be repeated for each AV device in the system, sothat the PLAY button will issue a different IR signal depending onwhether the DVD or the VCR is selected.

Clearly, these programming processes are not user-friendly. They aretime consuming, confusing, and rely on having the instruction manual inhand. As a result, many users do not bother to program their universalremote controls; and many of those who bother, program only a few mainfeatures (e.g., PLAY, STOP, VOLUME UP, ENTER CHANNEL) rather than thefull control set for every device.

IR is far from an ideal means of controlling AV devices. A positivefeature of IR is its very low cost. However, one drawback is that IRrequires line of sight between the remote control and the device beingcontrolled. Thus, an IR remote control cannot be used to control devicesinside a cabinet with a closed non-glass door. It also placeslimitations on the positioning of the user's furniture relative to thesitting/viewing position and the location of the equipment, as IRrequires that there be no obstruction between the remote control and thedevice being controlled. Many IR remotes also have distance limitationssuch that you often cannot control things from across a large room.Another drawback is that IR requires large batteries, as the IR LED usedto transmit is typically driven with up to 1 A of current. In addition,the data rate is very slow—so slow that even button presses (a few Hz atmost) incur a noticeable delay if a number of the button presses aresent consecutively, for example, when pressing VOLUME UP, VOLUME UP, . .. , VOLUME UP to increase the volume to a desired level.

A radio frequency (RF) remote control would be desirable. No line ofsight would be required, a greater distance could be covered, muchsmaller batteries could be used, and more interactive features could besupported (for example, a mouse-like cursor control feature for moresophisticated AV applications). For these reasons and others, RF remotecontrols have begun to increase in popularity. However, one disadvantageof an RF remote control is that it cannot be a “universal” or “learning”remote control.

Today, the most common RF remote controls are supplied with Cable,Satellite, Digital Terrestrial or Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) Set-TopBoxes. Many STB suppliers would like to offer dual mode RF and IR remotecontrols, allowing users to have “the best of both worlds.” Such dualmode remote controls conventionally have been prohibitively expensive,when the only low cost (less than $1) RF technologies were very simpleone-way systems using unlicensed RF bands such as 49 and 433 MHz. TheseRF technologies were very low data rate (typically, less than 10 kbps)and were not available worldwide, but had relatively good range. Morerecently, the worldwide adoption of a 2.4 GHz unlicensed band hasencouraged the development of a number of very low cost, two-way, highlyintegrated radio integrated circuits (ICs), which offer medium range andsupport data rates of up to 1 Mbps.

Thus, a low-cost dual mode IR and RF remote control that greatlysimplifies programming the “learning” and “universal” capabilities isdesirable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An improved remote control system preferably comprises a remote controlcapable of controlling a plurality of devices using a firstcommunication link, for example, an infrared (IR) link. A host device isalso preferably provided to configure the remote control. The hostdevice is preferably configured to transmit data to and receive datafrom the remote control using a second communications link, for example,a radio frequency (RF) link. In operation, the remote control canreceive command information from the host device. The commandinformation preferably includes control codes and signaling protocolsused by remotely controlled devices in the market. The commandinformation may be stored in memory in the host device, or the hostdevice may retrieve the command information from a remote database. Thehost device may also comprise a receiver to receive signals from remotecontrol transmitters supplied with the devices to be controlled by theimproved remote control.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other features and advantages of embodiments of theinvention will become readily apparent by reference to the followingdetailed description when considered in conjunction with theaccompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary embodiment of a remote control system.

FIG. 2 shows a flowchart of the programming operation for the remotecontrol system in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of the learning mode operation of the remotecontrol system in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the followingdisclosure, the invention as described herein may be embodied in manydifferent forms and should not be construed as limited to the specificembodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided sothat this disclosure will fully convey the principles and scope of theinvention to those skilled in the art.

FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of an improved remote control system 100.The remote control system 100 preferably comprises a Remote Control 10,a host device 20 with a two-way communications link 50 to transmit andreceive signals from an external source, and one or more Audio/Visual(AV) devices which may be controlled by an IR remote control 35, 45supplied with the AV devices. The remotely controlled AV devices mayinclude a TV 30, a DVD player 40, and/or other devices such as areceiver, a VCR, etc. The two-way communications link 50 may be a singlebidirectional link, such as an Internet connection or a digital cable TVconnection, or two unrelated communications paths, such as a satellitereceiver link 51 and a telephone line 52.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the Remote Control 10 is preferably aremote control device supplied with the host device 20. The RemoteControl 10 may be a remote control supplied with a Set-Top Box (STB),for example, a satellite, cable, or Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) STB. Inother embodiments, the Remote Control 10 may also be implemented inremote control devices supplied with AV devices or other devices with anIR remote control such as ceiling fans, blinds, or light fixtures.

The Remote Control 10 preferably comprises a processing element 11, amemory 12, a bidirectional wireless communication device 13, a pluralityof buttons 14, and an IR transmitter 15. The processing element 11 maybe implemented in a microcontroller unit (MCU). The memory 12 mayinclude Random Access Memory (RAM), Flash memory, Electrically ErasableProgrammable Read Only Memory (EEPROM), hard disk drive, and/or othermemory devices. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the bidirectionalwireless communications device 13 includes a radio transceiver, allowingthe Remote Control 10 to communicate with the host device 20 using abidirectional RF link 55. However, the bidirectional link 55 may includeany two-way communications link, including IR, ultrasonic, or even awired connection, for instance.

The host device 20 of the remote control system 100 preferably providesa main function in addition to programming the Remote Control 10. Forexample, the host device 20 in FIG. 1 comprises a Set-Top Box (STB) forreceiving television signals, decoding the signals, and outputting videosignals to the TV 30. The host device 20 includes a central processingunit (CPU) 21 and rewritable non-volatile data storage means 22. Thestorage means 22 provides program storage for the CPU and may includeFlash memory, EEPROM, or a hard disk drive. The storage means 22 mayalso contain an IR remote control code library. The host device 20preferably further includes the bidirectional data link 55 to the RemoteControl 10. The data link 55 may be implemented in the host device 20using a transceiver 53 and a processing element 54 dedicated to managingthe bidirectional data link 55, with the processing element 54exchanging data with the CPU 21. In another embodiment, the data link 55may be implemented using a transceiver 53 controlled by the CPU 21.Optionally, the host device 20 may also comprise an IR receiver 56.

As supplied (“out of the box”), the Remote Control 10 and the STB 20 canbe configured such that when a button 14 is pressed on the RemoteControl 10, the Remote Control 10 sends RF commands to the STB 20. Forexample, pressing the 1, 2, and 3 buttons on the Remote Control 10preferably causes the MCU 11 in the Remote Control 10 to send one ormore RF packets to the STB 20, which then causes the STB 20 to tune tochannel 123 and output a video signal to the TV 30. The TV 30 thendisplays the television station that corresponds to channel 123 on theSatellite, Cable, or IPTV system.

FIG. 2 shows in flowchart form an embodiment of a programming operationof the remote control system 100 in FIG. 1. In this embodiment, a usermay configure the Remote Control 10 to control an AV device using the AVdevice's IR remote control signals. In block 200, the user presseseither a specific SETUP button on the Remote Control 10, or the userholds down a multifunction button for an extended time (for example, 5seconds). In block 210, the Remote Control 10 then sends one or more RFpackets to the STB 20 indicating that the user wishes to program theRemote Control 10. In block 220, the STB 20 then displays an interactiveprogramming menu screen on the TV 30 or other display, such as a displayintegral with the Remote Control 10. In one embodiment, the menu screenmay contain instructions and a list of device types. The list of devicetypes may include TV, VCR, DVD player, CD player, Receiver, Tuner, PVR,etc.

For example, to configure the Remote Control 10 to control the TV 30,the user selects the TV option from the menu list using the UP and DOWNarrow buttons and then presses the ENTER button on the Remote Control10. The STB 20 then displays a menu list of TV vendors—for example,Sony, Panasonic, BenQ, etc. —preferably including an OTHER and/or MOREOPTIONS menu options. If, in block 230, the TV 30 is made by one of thevendors on the list, the user would select that vendor from the menu inblock 240. The STB 20 would then display a list of TV models from thatvendor. The list of models may be formatted, for example, as a singlelong list of models or as a tiered menu list. In a tiered menu list, afirst tier list may appear as a list of TV screen sizes, for example,“22-inch, 22-inch-27-inch, 27-inch, etc.,” followed by a sub-menu listof TV model numbers for each of the options provided in the first tier.When the user selects the TV model number from the menu, in block 250,the STB 20 then retrieves the details of the IR signals required to betransmitted for each function in order to control the TV 30. In block260, the STB 20 then sends the IR command information to the RemoteControl 10 via the RF link 55. In block 270, the Remote Control 10 thenstores the IR command information in memory 12.

Thereafter, when the user presses the TV button on the Remote Control10, any subsequent button presses causes the MCU 11 in the RemoteControl 10 to access the IR command information stored in memory 12 andsend the appropriate signals using the IR transmitter 15 in the RemoteControl 10. For example, if the user presses the TV button followed bythe VOLUME UP button, the MCU 11 finds the IR command information inmemory 12 corresponding to “increment volume” and sends that IR command.Thus, the Remote Control 10 will send IR signals to the TV 30 that arefunctionally equivalent to the IR signals that would be transmitted bythe remote control 35 originally supplied with the TV 30 when the VOLUMEUP button was pressed on the remote control 35.

In block 280, the user may then continue programming the Remote Control10 to control other AV devices, for example, a DVD player 40, by meansof the interactive menu system on the STB 20.

FIG. 3 shows a flowchart of the learning mode operation of the remotecontrol system 100 in FIG. 1. In some cases, the database stored in theSTB 20 may not include the IR command information for the AV device thatthe user wishes to program. For example, the user may want to configurethe Remote Control 10 to control the DVD player 40. If the DVD player 40is not included in the menu list (FIG. 2, block 230), then the remotecontrol system 100 enters the learning mode and provides instructions to“teach” the Remote Control 10 to control the DVD player 40. In block300, the user selects an option labeled, for example, “My DVD player isnot listed.” In block 310, the STB 20 then takes the user to anotherinteractive menu system to access the “learning” functions of the remotecontrol system 100. The STB 20 displays instructions on the TV 30guiding the user through the learning process. For example, the user maywant to teach the Remote Control 10 to control the FFWD function of theDVD player 40. In block 320, the user receives instructions to point theremote control 45 originally supplied with the DVD player 40 at the STB20 and press the FFWD button on that remote control 45. This causes, inblock 330, the DVD player remote control 45 to send the IR signals thatthe DVD player 40 interprets to mean “Fast Forward.” In block 340, theSTB 20 receives the IR signals using the IR receiver 56. In block 350,the STB 20 then analyzes the IR signals to determine the signalcharacteristics including the carrier frequency, the type of modulation(On/Off Key modulation, Pulse Width Modulation, etc.), and theunderlying data encoded in the transmission. In block 360, the STB 20then displays instructions on the TV 30 instructing the user to pressthe button on the Remote Control 10 that the user wishes to be used tosend the FFWD command to the DVD player 40. In block 370, the STB 20then sends to the Remote Control 10, via the RF data link 55, thecommand that defines the IR signals to be transmitted by the RemoteControl 10 to control the FFWD function in the DVD player 40. In block380, the MCU 11 in the Remote Control 10 stores the command in memory12. In block 390, the STB 20 displays further instructions on the TV 30,asking the user if “learning” is complete or if another button on theRemote Control 10 is to be programmed. This “teaching” process continuesuntil the user has programmed all of the DVD player functions that theuser wishes to control using the Remote Control 10.

According to further principles of the invention, the remote controlsystem 100 preferably permits online updating of the IR signal/codelibrary. Referring back to FIG. 1, the host device 20 (the STB)preferably includes a two-way communications link 50 to transmit andreceive signals from an external source. Using the communications link50, the STB 20 may communicate with a remote computer comprising amaster library of the IR signals/codes. The STB 20 may then periodicallyreceive updates to the IR signal/code library stored in memory 22 fromthe remote computer each time the master library is updated to supportnew devices or may access this database upon receiving a “My DVD (orsimilar) not listed.” Thus, if the user buys a new AV component onlyrecently brought to market, the library stored in memory 22 of the STB20 may be updated to support that new AV component. The user will beable to take full advantage of the “universal” Remote Control 10 thatwould not have been possible with the conventional solution.

In yet another aspect of the invention, the remote control system 100may provide an improved method of performing firmware updates.Unfortunately, early releases of many consumer electronic productsincorporating a processing element and firmware and/or softwaretypically have a “bug” in that firmware. Due to the complexity of thefirmware and/or the very wide variety of possible usage scenarios, itmay be impractical to test every possible combination prior to bringinga product to market. Thus, firmware updates are a common occurrence. Inthe conventional solution, the STB manufacturer may ship a newerrevision of the remote control incorporating the upgraded firmware tothe user. This solution may be costly for the manufacturer andunsatisfactory for the user. The principles of the present inventionoffer an improved solution. Using the two-way communications link 50, anSTB manufacturer may transmit firmware upgrades to the STB 20. Using theRF link 55, the revised firmware may then be uploaded from the STB 20 tothe memory 12 of the Remote Control 10 either automatically or inresponse to a user action through a HELP menu displayed on the TV 30 bythe STB 20.

As described above, the IR signal/code library may be stored in memory22 on the STB 20. In another embodiment of the remote control system100, the library is not stored in the STB 20. Rather, the library may bestored in a remote computer (not shown) and accessed by the STB 20through the data link 50 only when the user programs the Remote Control10. This embodiment may provide advantages for the owners of thelibrary. Providing the entire library, which may represent valuableintellectual property (IP), in a product may leave the library open to“hacking” by an IP thief. Maintaining control over the library mayprovide the owners of the library a level of security. This embodimentmay also provide an alternative business model for the owners of the IRsignal/code library. For example, the owners of the library may chargethe STB vendor a fee each time the database is accessed by the user.Thus, this business model may provide a constant stream of revenue forthe owners of the library, rather than a one-time licensing fee. The STBvendor may also benefit from this business model, which may reduce theupfront cost of building an STB.

The system described above can use dedicated processor systems,microcontrollers, programmable logic devices, or microprocessors thatperform some or all of the operations. Some of the operations describedabove may be implemented in software or firmware and other operationsmay be implemented in hardware.

For the sake of convenience, the operations are described as variousinterconnected functional blocks or distinct software modules. This isnot necessary, however, and there may be cases where these functionalblocks or modules are equivalently aggregated into a single logicdevice, program or operation with unclear boundaries. In any event, thefunctional blocks and software modules or features of the flexibleinterface can be implemented by themselves, or in combination with otheroperations in either hardware or software. They may also be modified instructure, content, or organization without departing from the spiritand scope of the invention.

It should be appreciated that reference throughout this specification to“one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature,structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodimentmay be included in at least one embodiment of the invention. Therefore,it is emphasized and should be appreciated that two or more referencesto “an embodiment” or “one embodiment” or “an alternative embodiment” invarious portions of this specification are not necessarily all referringto the same embodiment. Furthermore, the particular features, structuresor characteristics may be combined or separated as suitable in one ormore embodiments of the invention.

Similarly, it should be appreciated that in the foregoing description ofexemplary embodiments of the invention, various features of theinvention are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure,or description thereof for the purpose of streamlining the disclosureand aiding in the understanding of one or more of the various inventiveaspects. This method of disclosure, however, is not to be interpreted asreflecting an intention that the claimed invention requires morefeatures than are expressly recited in each claim. Rather, as thefollowing claims reflect, inventive aspects lie in less than allfeatures of a single foregoing disclosed embodiment. Thus, the claimsfollowing the detailed description are hereby expressly incorporatedinto this detailed description, with each claim standing on its own as aseparate embodiment of this invention.

Furthermore, having described exemplary embodiments of the invention, itis noted that modifications and variations can be made by personsskilled in the art in light of the above teachings. Therefore, it is tobe understood that changes may be made to embodiments of the inventiondisclosed that are nevertheless still within the scope and the spirit ofthe invention.

1. A system, comprising: a remote control comprising a firstcommunications link and a second communications link; and a host deviceadapted to configure the remote control using the first communicationslink, wherein the configured remote control is adapted to control aplurality of remote devices using the second communications link,wherein the host device is further configured to update the remotecontrol with device-specific command information from a database usingthe first communications link if the database contains thedevice-specific command information, and entering a learning mode if thedatabase does not contain the device-specific command information,wherein the host device comprises a receiver configured to receivesignals from a remote control transmitter associated with at least oneof the plurality of devices.
 2. The system according to claim 1, whereinthe host device is adapted to transmit command information forcontrolling one of the plurality of remote devises to the remote controlresponsive to user inputs.
 3. The system according to claim 2, whereinthe command information comprises one or more command codes andsignaling protocols used for controlling remotely controlled devices. 4.The system according to claim 3, wherein the command informationincludes one or more infrared (IR) command codes and signalingprotocols.
 5. The system according to claim 2, wherein the host devicecomprises a memory for storing the command information.
 6. The systemaccording to claim 2, wherein the host device retrieves the commandinformation from a remote database.
 7. The system according to claim 1,wherein the first communications link comprises a radio frequency (RF)link.
 8. The system according to claim 1, wherein the secondcommunications link comprises an infrared (IR) data transmitter.
 9. Amethod, comprising: accessing a programming menu on a host deviceresponsive to a signal transmitted from a remote control using a firstcommunications link; displaying the programming menu on a display;selecting from the programming menu a device to be controlled by theremote control wherein the selected device is controllable by anassociated remote control transmitter; transmitting command informationassociated with the selected device from the host device to the remotecontrol using the first communications link; storing the commandinformation in the remote control; controlling the selected device withthe remote control using a second communications link; receiving afirmware upgrade from the host device using the first communicationslink, selecting a learning mode when the device to be controlled by theremote control is not in the programming menu; and determining commandinformation associated with the device to be controlled, whereindetermining the command information comprises receiving and analyzingthe signals from the remote control transmitter, wherein the signals arereceived and analyzed in the host device.
 10. The method according toclaim 9, further comprising retrieving the command information from amemory in the host device.
 11. The method according to claim 10, furthercomprising: receiving updates to the command information from a remotedatabase.
 12. The method according to claim 9, further comprisingretrieving the command information from a remote database.
 13. Themethod according to claim 9, wherein the first communications linkcomprises a radio frequency (RF) link.
 14. The method according to claim9, wherein the second communications link comprises an infrared (IR)link.
 15. The method according to claim 9, further comprising: accessinga learning mode menu on the host device, wherein the learning mode menuprovides instructions to the user through the display.
 16. The methodaccording to claim 15, wherein determining the command informationassociated with the signals from the remote control transmitter furthercomprises: transmitting signals from the remote control transmittingassociated with the device to be controlled.
 17. A remote control,comprising: a first communications link configured to transmit signalsto and receive command information from a database accessible to a hostdevice in response to receiving a selection of at least one deviceassociated with the command information, the command informationcomprising command codes and signaling protocols for controlling one ormore of a plurality of remotely controlled devices, wherein the commandcodes and signaling protocols are based on signals received by the hostdevice from one or more remote controls associated with the one or moreremotely controlled devices, and wherein the first communications linkis further configured to receive the command information from the hostdevice if the database contains the command information, and is furtherconfigured to cause the remote control to enter a learning mode if thedatabase does not contain the command information; a memory to store thecommand information received from the host device; and a secondcommunications link to control the one or more of the plurality ofremotely controls devices.
 18. The remote control according to claim 17,wherein the first communications link comprises a radio frequency (RF)transceiver.
 19. The device according to claim 17, wherein the secondcommunications link comprises an infrared (IR) transmitter.